Building a luxury real estate business without connections, without a luxury background, and without a roadmap sounds impossible. But it is not.
In an episode of Mastering Luxury with Sandra, I talked to Jac Smith of Keller Williams Luxury. We explored what it truly means to build a luxury real estate business from the ground up.
Jac Smith of Keller Williams, a luxury real estate company in St. Petersburg, proves that referral depth, radical generosity, and authentic connection can become the foundation of a high-performing luxury business. According to real estate referral statistics, referrals drive most top producer transactions.
Let’s explore how tapping into the power of referrals and building genuine relationships can transform the trajectory of a luxury real estate business.
Link to the full episode:
Why I Had This Conversation
When I think about the guests I invite onto Mastering Luxury with Sandra, I am not just looking for top producers. I am looking for people whose heart matches their hustle. Jac Smith is exactly that person.
I first met Jac at an industry event. What struck me was not his sales volume. It was how quickly he walked up and introduced himself. In a room full of high achievers who tend to wait for others to come to them, Jac crossed the room first. That told me everything.
Jac is a top luxury agent with Keller Williams in St. Petersburg, Florida. His Keller Williams agent profile details his background. His story is one of the most unconventional paths to luxury real estate I have ever heard.
He spent 20 years as an AT&T fiber optics lineman. He climbed poles and went down in manholes. Then he moved into mortgage banking. He bought a restaurant and a bed and breakfast at the Jersey Shore. Then Hurricane Sandy wiped it all out in 2012.
He landed in St. Pete, did not know a single soul, and built one of the most referral-dominant luxury teams in the market.
The Jac Smith Group has become widely recognized as a top real estate brokerage in St. Pete and Tampa.
If you have ever told yourself that luxury real estate is not for you, that you do not have the background or the polish, Jac’s story is the answer.
The 9-Level Deep Referral System That Tracks Every Connection
Jac’s referral tracking system, which agents at any level can implement, starts with a simple chart. He maps every client relationship not just by who referred him, but by how many generations of referrals stem from that one person. This referral tracking system real estate professionals often overlook, is what separates Jac from agents who wait for business to come to them.
Here is how it works. Jac maps every client relationship on a chart. He tracks who referred him, who that person referred him to, and who that person referred him to, continuing outward.
He tracks both depth (how many generations of referrals stem from one original relationship) and width (how many separate referral chains branch from a single source).
At the time of our conversation, Jac’s network runs 9 levels deep and 5 levels wide from a single original client. Two clients alone have each produced referral chains 4 and 5 levels wide.
This is not an accident. It is the result of consistent nurturing, proactive outreach, and treating every person in the chain as a VIP.
“We track who our top 100 VIPs are. Really, the top 25 and 50. And we don’t ever say the word sell. We’d always just say, ” How can we help you? Who do you know? If anybody you know, I can help. I don’t know that you know that. The training that we had was buy, sell, or invest in real estate. It just didn’t sit well with me. It just sounded like a used car salesman to me. I just say, how can we help? Who do we help? How can we help?”
His top 25 to 50 relationships get the most active attention. And critically, Jac never uses the word “sell.” His team’s language is simple. How can we help? Who do you know?
The Tampa Magazines feature highlights how the Jac Smith Group has become a top brokerage in the region.
His Luxury on the Fairway listing and Triple Win Big Impact team story demonstrate the caliber of properties and client relationships he manages.
The takeaway here is powerful. Most agents track closed deals. Jac tracks people. The deals are just what happens when the people are taken care of.
That is how Jac Smith of Keller Williams Luxury runs his business every single day.
The Orchid and Chocolate Strategy — Coming From Contribution Every Time
This one stopped me in my tracks. It is so simple and so intentional at the same time.
Jac brings a live orchid and a box of custom chocolates to every listing appointment. Not just the big ones. Not just the clients he already knows. Every single one.
The orchid, he explains, is practical beauty. Affordable in Florida, elegant, and resilient. He always tells clients that if it stops blooming, put it outside. It will come back in six months. The metaphor practically writes itself.
What I love most about this strategy is what it communicates before Jac says a single word. He has already told the client: I value your time, I am grateful to be here, and I am not going to walk in empty-handed. That is a luxury mindset. Not because the gift is expensive, but because the intention is generous.
“We walk into every single appointment with an orchid and a box of custom chocolates. We come from gratitude — thank you for having us. And has it always worked out that we got the listing? No. Sometimes they have a family member. Sometimes we weren’t a good fit. I’m very direct — I’m not soft and kind in all those ways. But I think the most important part is always to come from contribution, period. Say hello, come from contribution, how can I help you? That’s it. That’s how simple it is.”
For agents who struggle with gifting, Jac’s advice is to ask the right intake questions. One of the first things his team asks sellers: What is your favorite restaurant in town? That one question eliminates the guesswork and almost guarantees a closing gift that feels deeply personal.
My sophisticated luxury home selling strategies align with this philosophy. You can also see the caliber of properties I represent by browsing our luxury homes for sale in South Florida.
“I came to St. Pete and didn’t know a soul. So I just applied the AA principles to what I needed to do. I joined every single group I could. I joined a square dancing group — I never square danced in my life. I joined a line dancing group — never line danced in my life. I went to a church I had never been to in my entire life. I walked with the Romeos — that’s a national thing, really old men eating out. I went to the dog park. I went to the movies even though I didn’t want to, because I didn’t know who they knew. You just learn to do that. Show up. Stay open. And connect with whoever walks through the door.”
Open House Extravaganzas — Why Jac Refuses to Call Them “Open Houses”
The open house extravaganza tips Jac shared with me are radically different from what most agents do.
- He refuses to call them open houses at all. They are extravaganzas.
- He places 40 to 50 directional signs starting an hour and a half before the event. His team hits every major intersection in the development with four signs each, funneling traffic directly to the property.
- He door-knocks 250 flyers with a team of eight before every single event. Inside the property, there are cookies, treats, juice boxes for kids, bottled water, and on Sundays, a tastefully served mimosa option.
- He shoots a walk-through video the moment he arrives so his social audience sees the work happening in real time.
Open house best practices confirm that agents who treat open houses as events rather than obligations see dramatically higher conversion rates. Jac lives this data.
What Jac identified early is that people assume real estate agents sell a house, collect a check, and disappear. The extravaganza format is a visible, public demonstration of your work. That you show up. That you care about the outcome.
When you are ready for a confident luxury home purchase, the agent who shows up differently is the one who earns your trust.
Using AI, DISC Profiles, and the Phone to Outwork a Crowded Market
Jac discovered that AI is a game-changer for agents who struggle to soften their direct communication style.
He writes exactly what he wants to say, then asks AI to make it warm and friendly. But when I suggested using AI for real estate communication and DISC profiles by telling the AI the recipient’s specific personality type, Jac adopted it on the spot.
AI for real estate allows a high D agent like Jac to write a letter that resonates with a high I client without losing his authentic voice.
One of my own agents maintains separate chat contexts tailored to different personality types so the tone shifts appropriately.
For agents newer to AI, the most practical entry point is exactly what Jac described. Write your message. Then tell the AI to adjust the tone to match the personality type of the person receiving it. That small shift has a big impact on how your communication lands.
Personality-driven AI for real estate is transforming how top agents connect with clients without losing authenticity.
“I’m such a high D. I started using AI when I want to send a note to somebody — I write what I’ll say, and then I say: please make it warm and friendly and yet professional. And it says exactly what I think, but in a way I don’t know how to put into words. And then when Sandra told me about putting the DISC profile into the prompt — so when I write a letter, I say they’re a high I, write it in a way a high I will understand it — I never thought about putting the DISC profile in. That’s great. See, that’s what you taught me. Another thing you taught me.”
Beyond AI, Jac’s phone discipline is relentless. He starts calls at 6:30 AM. He runs networking blocks through 8:45 AM. And he keeps the phone in the kitchen at night, not on the nightstand.
Setting work-life boundaries real estate agents desperately need to start with that simple act. Jac tells every client he is available from 7 AM to 7 PM, seven days a week.
That is the work-life boundaries real estate agents often fail to communicate because they fear losing business. Leaving his phone in the kitchen at night eliminated nearly all his late-night calls.
Work-life boundaries for real estate agents show that agents who set clear boundaries actually retain more clients because they show up fresher and more focused. Jac is living proof.
What Changed for Me After This Conversation
I walked away from this conversation with a few things I am going to do differently.
First, I am going to bring cookies on a plane. A box of Girl Scout cookies with a business card attached to a flight attendant costs almost nothing and creates a memory. Never miss an opportunity to be remembered for the right reasons.
Second, I was reminded that the things we do naturally are often exactly what other people are searching for. Jac has a cleaning lady who referred him to a $4.5 million listing because he treated her with the same generosity he shows everyone. That is not a strategy. That is character. And character compounds.
Third, Jac’s willingness to walk into completely unfamiliar spaces just to meet people he did not know yet is one of the most honest and transferable growth strategies I have encountered. You do not know who someone knows until you know them. Show up anyway.
The wealth of the luxury real estate referral strategy is private and quiet. The way you enter that world is not by announcing yourself. It is by being present, being generous, and trusting that the right people find their way to you when you are consistently showing up as your best self.
Jac Smith of Keller Williams Luxury has built something remarkable without a silver spoon, without family connections, and without a roadmap. He just showed up. Every single day.
Jac proves that luxury is not about where you come from. It is about how you show up for people.
FAQ Section
1. How did Jac Smith break into luxury real estate without a luxury background?
Jac Smith did not start in luxury. He built his way in through relationships. His business partner, Divya, came from a well-connected community. Their first major luxury listing came when a client who had been unable to sell for five years took a chance on their team. They marketed aggressively, leveraged agent relationships to bring the right buyers, and closed a $5.5 million sale in 60 days. You do not need to be luxurious from day one. You need the right partnerships and the willingness to out-hustle the competition.
2. What is Jac Smith’s referral tracking system, and how can other agents use it?
Jac maps referrals on a chart that tracks both depth (how many generations of referrals stem from one client) and width (how many separate referral branches have grown from a single source). This referral tracking system real estate professionals can start today requires only a CRM and consistent phone calls. He maintains a top 100 VIP list with focused attention on the top 25 to 50. He nurtures those relationships through consistent phone calls, handwritten notes, and thoughtful gifts. The system only works if you actively nurture it, which means phone calls, not just emails.
3. How does Jac Smith set work-life boundaries while running a high-volume luxury team?
Jac communicates his availability window of 7 AM to 7 PM, seven days a week, at the very first client appointment. These work-life boundaries real estate agents need are simple but rarely practiced. He leaves his phone in the kitchen at night, which naturally limits after-hours anxiety and late-night interruptions. He also began protecting weekends more intentionally after recognizing that his team members were not getting enough time with their families. His approach is to set the boundary early, communicate it clearly, and trust that genuinely urgent situations are rarer than the anxiety around them suggests.
Apply as a Guest on the Mastering Luxury with Sandra Podcast
Luxury real estate rewards the agents who lead with generosity, build relationships that compound over the years, and never stop learning. If that sounds like the business you are building, or the business you want to build, I would love to have you on the show.
Whether you are a team leader, a solo agent, a brokerage owner, or a luxury specialist solving real problems in your market, your story and your strategies belong in this conversation.
